Who Am I? Chapter 9
*Danny's POV*
The guards in front of the massive gate gave Sam and me death stares and never once broke our gaze. Their expressions made it clear that at any moment, they could bring down their weapons and turn us into ash. We would only be tiny specks of dust-not even recognizable particles. I looked over at Sam and reminded myself of my responsibility to her as her lover and, more importantly, as her protector. Before anything bad could happen, I put myself between Sam and the guard who was threatening her.
"You leave her ALONE!" I said with a slight growl at the end of my sentence.
The guard, with his trident now pointed at me, looked me in the eye questionally.
"Who are you?" He asked once more.
"Her name is Sam. Sam Manson." I said as I gestured to Sam, who was slightly behind me now. Her hands were on my shoulders, and her head rested next to mine. I looked over at her and smiled softly to let her know that I wouldn't let anything happen to her.
"And YOU are?"
I scoffed.
"Dunno. I'll let you know when I figure that out. I've been searching for the answer to that question for eighteen years."
"Well then, what do you call yourself then? Even a low-life outside such as you certainly has a name, right?"
My eyebrow twitched slightly at his rude comment, but since he had the trident still aimed at me, I refrained from arguing any further.
"My name is Danny."
"Danny, huh. 'Danny' what?"
"Fenton. It's Danny Fenton."
Both guards looked at me intently for a minute. Their eyes were glued to me like a child is to a video game screen. After a few seconds, I was already creeped out. The guards stopped looking at me, and then they turned back to look at each other. And again, after a while, they looked at me. Instead of staring, as I expected them to do, they started laughing!
"BWAHAHAHAHAH! No seriously, who are you?"
I scowled.
"I've told you already! My name is Danny Fenton!"
One guard raised an eyebrow and rolled his eyes.
"Stop wasting our time, kid. Everyone who's anyone knows that the real Danny Fenton died almost two decades ago."
"Well, I can assure you that I'M not dead and that Danny is and has always been my name. I'm not lying!"
"Sir, do you have any ID?" asked the other guard.
"ID? What do you mean 'ID'?"
"Identification."
"We know what 'ID' stands for, dumb ass!" Sam interjected.
The guard became flustered and angry. His face scrunched up and sweat drops rolled down his cheek. In the back of my mind I secretly praised Sam for sticking up for us; however, I was worried that her smart remark would get us in a world of trouble.
"As if we weren't there already..." I thought.
"Who do you think you are, outsider scum? I'll have you know that we destroy big mouths who defy us, such as yourselves, right on the spot. No mercy whatsoever."
The other guard aimed his trident at Sam, and I protectively got between it and her once more.
"You leave her alone!" I hissed loudly.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Sam tense up at the sound of my raised voice. I felt a twinge of guilt for startling her, but I was more focused on the threat in front of us. I refused to move and the guard never lowered his weapon. My eyes began to glow an angry, eerie green.
"Danny, just calm down," I heard Sam whisper soothingly.
"We don't want to cause a scene."
I turned my head around to face her, but as I did, I heard the trident charge up behind me. Before I had the chance to react, I felt a sharp, burning sensation on my face and the entire left side of my body all the way down to the tip on my tail fin.
"Danny!"
My body collapsed to the ground as my body began to writhe in pain. I wanted to clutch the sizzling burns along my side, but even the slightest touch sent painful nerve impulses all throughout me. I felt as though I had just been electrocuted with a million volts, but even THAT was an understatement.
"AHHH! Hey! Let go!" I heard Sam shriek.
My fin ears twitched at the sound of Sam's distress. I desperately tried to get up in order to help her, but my body refused to move. I glanced up and saw that one guard had Sam trapped in a headlock.
"S-Sam...!"
Sam continued to struggle around, but the guard held her firm. She had no chance of escape. The feeling of being unable to help her was agonizing. Above all, I wanted it to be me. I wanted Sam to be free, even if it meant I would be these guard's prisoner. I looked up at my assailant and saw that the trident was still pointed at me. Thin wisps of grey smoke wafted around the three sharp edges of the weapon. I knew that at any moment, he would finish me off. His trident started glowing again, but before he had the chance to fire, a loud, thundering voice call from behind him.
"Guards! What is going on here?"
My attacker dropped his weapon in shock. He didn't just lower his arm, either. The trident slipped out of his grip and hit the ocean floor with a loud thud. The guard hesitantly turned around and started trembling.
"Your Majesty, we were just-"
"Just causing problems and creating unnecessary violence and destruction? I won't have this in my Kingdom! Have you forgotten who I am? I am the God of the sea, and as such, I can have you easily disposed of for this frivolous quarreling! Enough is enough! I can hear your whole commotion a thousand leagues away! I'll ask you once more. What is going on here?"
"These outsiders appeared and well-"
"That doesn't mean you need to attack them! For pete's sake, they don't look hostile at all! I swear, you and the rest of the guards are a pain in the tail fin. Tell me, if it was necessary to shoot, then what the heck did they do?"
My head was becoming cloudy and dizzy from the intensity of the pain. I knew I was burned, but I wasn't sure how bad it really was. Judging from the level of hurt I was feeling, I knew I had to be in critical condition. My thoughts and senses became hazy, so I could no longer follow the conversation. I was only able to gather a little bit of what they were saying to one another.
"Impostor...The real one is dead, remember? I thought..."
"You're sure he said...?"
"And he doesn't even..."
"But the resemblance..."
"I don't...I..."
What little strength I had inside me finally burned out, and my consciousness slipped from my loose grasp. Helpless, weak, and vulnerable, I passed out with my whole body coiled up in a loose ball on the ocean floor.
*Poseidon's POV*
I forced my insolent guards aside and went over to the injured teenager resting completely still on the ground. Except for the perpetual ocean tides brushing his long, white hair back and forth, he never moved. His entire body was covered in dark, red burns. The burns were so severe that many of them had started sizzling. His emerald tail now had pitch black spots all over it, which revealed that the scales in those areas were completely destroyed. So much so, that I was certain that those scales would never grow back. Carefully, I lifted the boy up and cradled him in my arms. The boy appeared to be about eighteen years old, but in his unconscious state, he reminded me of a small, helpless child. I brushed some of his hair out of his face, and yet, he never stirred. A soft groan escaped from his lips.
"He'll never heal without the proper medical care." I told my guards.
"But I could have sworn you told us to destroy any potentially dangerous enemy to Atlantis!"
"And I'm telling you to stand down and fetch a medic to attend to him. Look at this boy, guards," I said as I gestured to the teen's body.
"Does he look dangerous to you? He couldn't defend himself let alone threaten or attack anyone in his vulnerable condition. Go to the palace and find our best healers. Tell them to wait in one of the vacant rooms with all of their supplies prepared. Got that?'
Both guards backed up and bowed their heads respectively.
"We'll get right on it, your Majesty."
The gate opened, and both guards quickly swam through it, heading straight for the palace. I turned to look at the boy I was holding, and I saw a girl by his side holding his hand. She had medium-length black hair, amethyst eyes and tail, and was wearing an old, torn, black sweatshirt. Her eyes were filled with tears and concern as she gripped the boy's hand tightly.
"Excuse me, but who are you?" I asked calmly.
The girl, still with her eyes locked on the unconscious teen, bit her lower lip nervously.
"S-Sam. My name is Sam." She replied, barely whispering her response.
"And this boy? Is he a friend of yours?"
Sam nodded.
"Yes..He's um...my boyfriend."
"What's his name?"
"Danny."
Tense, I looked Sam directly in the eyes as I felt sweat gather at the top of my forehead and slowly drip down my cheeks.
"Danny...what? What is his last name?"
"It's Fenton. Now, um...I know that the guards said that he was lying, but it's the truth. He-"
"Proof?"
"Huh?"
"I said 'proof'!" I repeated. "Do you have proof of his identity? Anything?"
"Well, no...I don't."
I took another glance at Danny and carefully looked him over. Long, silky, white hair, green fins and tail, and a faint white glow around him. As I was analyzing him, my eyes took notice of a small, golden object around his neck.
"What's this?" I asked as I lifted it up and held it in my hands.
"T-That's Danny's locket. He's had it his entire life. It's very important to him." Sam replied.
I pressed the tiny button on the side of it and gently opened the locket. When I saw the picture inside, I almost fainted from disbelief. I immediately closed it and let go of it. The tiny, golden locket rested in the center of his chest just as it was before.
"Um, s-sir...I, uh..."
"Poseidon."
"What?"
"Call me poseidon. That's my name. Personally, I'd rather everyone call me that instead of 'sir' or 'your majesty'."
Sam nodded.
"O-okay..."
I gestured for Sam to follow me.
"Come with me, Sam. I'll be taking Danny back to my palace where Atlantis's finest healers will take care of his injuries using our most advanced healing techniques."
Sam nodded once more and followed me, staying close to Danny the entire way there. I couldn't help but feel a sense of gratitude and security as I held Danny close to my chest.
"So after all these years, he's managed to survive? He was even lucky enough to survive the manual transformation. Or perhaps it was his new love who saved him from death." I thought as I quickly glanced at Sam.
"I don't know if it was fate, destiny, or pure chance that brought Danny here, but despite everything, it doesn't matter. He's here now, and I am not going to lose him again."
So finally this fic is going somewhere ^^. Well judging from the last line, it appears that this is not the first time Poseidon has met Danny. So what connection do the two of them have or is just a mere coincidence that Poseidon seems to recognize Danny from a previous encounter?
WAI is drawing near its conclusion fairly quick. From here, there will be 2 more chapters plus an epilogue. My goal is to have this story completely done before September 4, 2012. On that day is when I go back to school. I'll do my best to update whenever I can. Till then, hope you enjoy~! ^^